It won’t retrieve the global economy from the ditch, but there is a bacterium that consumes a toxic metal to produce pure gold.

A photo of the art installation "The Great Work of the Metal Lover" by Michigan State University associate professor of electronic art and intermedia, Adam Brown. The installation shows the bacteria Cupriavidus metallidurans as it consumes liquid gold — a toxic metal — leaving behind a 24-karat gold byproduct.G.L. Kohuth/Michigan State University

Comments our editors find particularly useful or relevant are displayed in Top Comments, as are comments by users with these badges: . Replies to those posts appear here, as well as posts by staff writers.

To pause and restart automatic updates, click "Live" or "Paused". If paused, you'll be notified of the number of additional comments that have come in.

Comments our editors find particularly useful or relevant are displayed in Top Comments, as are comments by users with these badges: . Replies to those posts appear here, as well as posts by staff writers.